Glenys and David were up early making sure I was well fed before setting off. Home made bread and muesli and a strong espresso, just perfect!

There was another 30km left of the excellent West Coast Wilderness trail, made up of more fun singletrack, followed by an old rail trail. It ended in the town of Ross, just in time for a second breakfast/brunch.  

I’ve been asked by other riders, do I crash much?  Unicyclists use a term known as ‘UPD’, an unplanned dismount, when they step off a unicycle (there is no such thing as falling off).  I had a few of those, but that is not the same as ‘crashing’, which involves some degree of rubbing yourself into the ground.  Today, after over 2200km, I report my first ‘crash’, on a very smooth, very straightforward trail, for no apparent reason. Gargh! I was steering off to the side. Next minute I was stumbling and sliding on gravel. Thank goodness for gloves! Limbs and unicycle intact, pride not so much, I took it easy for a few km. 

The riding today was mostly on sealed road, with a bit of gravel at the start. When you’re riding well, you get into the ‘zone’, where you contemplate life, the universe and politics, which I won’t bore you with. Either way, it made kilometers tick by very quickly.  Before I knew it, I was at Lake Ianthe, the photo checkpoint. 

The scenery today was stunning. Gushing  rivers, native bush, misty mountains (there was light drizzle)…it’s why the West Coast is one of my favourite places.  I unicycled the same roads exactly 15 years ago, going in the opposite direction (South -> North), so it brought back many memories from the 2007 SINZ unicycle tour.

Just before Whataroa I was met by Angela and her kids from Mt Adam Lodge, complete with freshly baked muffins.  Yummy! I made short work of one and tucked a couple more in the bag for the road. It’s so great having people out supporting TA, it’s really appreciated by the riders. 

I’m staying in Whataroa for the night, having done 109 ‘easy’ km. The legs are feeling good again.